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Questions?
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Sowbugs and
Pillbugs
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Look like tiny armadillos -
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Summary: Normally these small land
crustaceans don't harm anything in the garden. Only
occasionally will high numbers cause damage to
seedlings. Sowbugs/pillbugs can also sometimes
enter homes to escape saturated soil or in
search of water when it is dry. They cause no damage
in homes.
Jack DeAngelis, PhD
OSU Ext. Entomologist (ret.)
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Sowbugs, pillbug, woodlice identification
Sowbugs, pillbugs, or woodlice [more pictures] are small land
crustaceans, actually related to shrimp,
that are common in gardens. They are roughly 1/4"
long, gray to brown in color, have many pairs of
legs and a segmented body, and are often found in
groups under rocks or debris where the soil is damp.
Pillbugs roll into a ball when disturbed, sowbugs do
not roll up this way but otherwise the two are very
similar.
Sowbugs and pillbugs normally don't harm
garden plants. They feed mostly on dead organic
debris but occasionally may damage young garden
seedlings. Two situations occur that cause gardeners
and homeowners some concern.
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Sowbugs and pillbugs are
found in moist habitats under rocks and
debris. Photo by E. DeAngelis.
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Cleaner,
Safer,
Botanical Pesticides For Home And Garden
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Sometimes tender, young garden seedlings are
damaged, the damage is similar to slug damage.
This plant damage only occurs when very high
populations of these critters are allowed to develop
and when very young plants are present. Plant injury
is pretty rare and can usually be easily managed.
The second way sowbugs and pillbugs cause
problems is when they enter houses following rains
when outside soils become saturated, or in search of
water when it is extremely dry outside. Sowbugs found
indoors, however, won't cause any damage and can be
simply swept up.
other common names: woodlice (wood louse),
lawn shrimp, rollie-pollie (pillbug), rolly-polly,
tumblebug, doodlebug
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Control
In one sense high numbers of these critters
is really a good thing-- it means that your garden
soils are rich in organic matter and healthy.
You can reduce the populations, however, by reducing
the amount of organic matter, such as compost, that
you add to the garden and by cutting back on the
frequency of watering. If the soil is allowed to
go through natural dry/wet cycle sowbug and pillbug
numbers will be reduced.
Gardeners can use diatomaceous earth
(see Using Diatomaceous
Earth for Pest Control) to manage sowbug and
pillbug damage to young seedlings. Place a thin layer
of this natural product directly over the seed bed.
There is also a new formulation of Sluggo slug
bait that contains spinosad, a natural
insecticide that can be used to safely manage earwigs
and sowbugs/pillbugs in the garden (see Using
Slug Baits).
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Mission: To provide accurate,
up-to-date and unbiased information for solving common
insect and mite problems around your home, business
and landscape using least-toxic methods.
Jack DeAngelis, Ph.D.
Please see the Disclaimer statements as
well.
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